Conan O’Brien Sells Podcast Company to SiriusXM for $150 Million
Conan O'Brien has agreed to sell his podcast company Team Coco to SiriusXM for $150 million.
The Hollywood Reporter notes that O'Brien signed a five-year talent deal with the service as part of the sale.
In the deal, SiriusXM obtains exclusive video rights for each podcast on the network, including Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, Literally! with Rob Lowe and The Three Questions with Andy Richter.
SiriusXM also acquired the archives of all 11 seasons of Conan, the former TBS late-night program.
SiriusXM will not distribute the properties exclusively on its app but instead offer the programs across all podcast services.
O'Brien selling a podcast company that's barely four years old for $150 million is further proof that the future of media is indeed entrepreneurial. The most lucrative contracts are no longer talent deals with major television networks but through sales and partnerships.
To name a few,
-- Penn National Gaming paid Dave Portnoy around $100 million in stock for his remaining equity in Barstool Sports.
-- Joe Rogan signed a three and a half year, $200 million deal to license his podcast to Spotify exclusively.
-- Spotify agreed to a similar $60 million licensing deal with Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper.
-- Bill Simmons received around $100 million by selling The Ringer to Spotify.
-- In 2021, Pat McAfee signed a $30 million a year partnership agreement with FanDuel, a deal in which McAfee retained ownership of his content company.
(A lot of Spotifys.)
Now, add in O'Brien, who was able to sell his company and sign a non-exclusive talent contract that allows him to earn separate checks elsewhere.
In addition to his deal with SiriusXM, O'Brien has a contract with Warner Bros. Discovery to develop a sketch show for HBO Max later in 2022.
While O'Brien is no longer as relevant as Bill Maher, Stephen Colbert or even Jimmy Fallon, those three hosts are still just employees. O'Brien, as an entrepreneur, is now richer than all of them.
"When I started in television my ultimate goal was to work my way up to radio — This new deal with SiriusXM builds on the great relationship that began several years ago with a team that is the standout in their field," O'Brien said in a statement.
Somewhere Jay Leno is screeching loudly over Conan O'Brien's nine-figure payday.